As a general for the United States Army, General George
S. Patton would often say meaningful statements, many of
which were transcribed. My personal favorite is as
follows, May God have mercy on my enemies, because I
sure as hell won't.
This quote stuck with me because
it is sort of how sports work. We never show mercy to each
other, we just attack.
Now even though General Patton was so strongly focused on destroying his enemies, he still had a code of honor.
Kill all the Germans you can, but do not kill them when they are up against a wall ready to surrender. Do your killing in the fields. We are to honor the Rules of Land Warfare at all times. If a German surrenders, he is to be treated with respect as a prisoner of war, the same treatment you would hope to get as a prisoner if you are unlucky enough to be captured by the enemy. Americans are not savages. Americans do not kick people in the face if they have been knocked down.So even though he had no problem showing no mercy to his enemies on the battlefield, he still had some sort of moral code. I think that this is sort of what sports are like. We only do are fighting on the field.
Now after all this talk about this man, I think it is time to see the
man we have been talking about.
Since I have done all the talking so far, I shall give these lovely people a chance to tell you what they think of General Patton and his work.
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